Isaiah 13:1
I. (1-39) Condemnation
A. Chapters 1-12 - Prophecies against Israel and Judah
B. Chapters 13-23 - Prophecies against the Nations
1. \\#Isa 13:1-14:23\\ Babylon - Isaiah looked beyond what would happen
to Assyria, the destroyer of Israel, and saw what God would do
to Babylon, the destroyer of Judah. This chapter is dual in its
nature, describing both what has happened to Babylon in their
historic defeat by the Persians and what will happen in a great
end time defeat \\#Isa 13:10, 11, 13\\. While the Bible does not
give all the details of the end time battle, \\#Rev 18:1-24\\ does
describe Babylon’s certain end.
a. \\#Isa 13:1-5\\ An Army of Nations Is Called
b. \\#Isa 13:6-16\\ An End-Time Judgment Against the World
c. \\#Isa 13:17-18\\ A Nearer Judgment Against Babylon
d. \\#Isa 13:19-22\\ The Final Judgment Against Babylon
I. \\#Isa 13:1-14:23\\ Babylon
A. \\#Isa 13:1-5\\ An Army of Nations Is Called
1. \\#Isa 13:1\\ "The burden of Babylon" - Isaiah had been given a message
of judgment to proclaim to Babylon.
a. It is called a "burden" because the duty to proclaim it is heavy
upon Isaiah. No prophet ever gave a message of demise lightly.
b. \\#Isa 14:28\\ This burden was given in the year that King Ahaz,
the King of Judah \\#Isa 7:1\\, died.
2. There is no doubt that the Lord was speaking of Babylon’s destruction
for that is the country addressed. How great is our God? The
Assyrians were the dominant world power as Isaiah was prophesying.
They had yet to finish their conquests, including of Israel itself.
After which, the Assyrians would then be conquered by the Babylonians.
Before any of that happened, God was already describing the Persians
and the Medes who would conquer Babylon \\#Isa 13:17\\!
3. However, the references to multiple nations making up this conquering
army\\#Isa 13:4\\, to the whole world being punished \\#Isa 13:11\\,
and to the heavenly signs which are to accompany the battle
\\#Isa 13:10\\, make it just as obvious that this is not merely the
Persians conquering the Babylonians. This is a dual-reference
prophecy, being partially fulfilled by what the Persians did centuries
ago, but which will have a greater fulfillment in the end time.
4. Isaiah has then described two battles at the same time, one historic
and one future. He did this without any time separation between the
two conflicts. This makes it difficult to determine which verses
apply to Babylon’s fall to the Medes and which verses describe
the end time battle. Since an eschatology battle is clearly being
depicted, for this study, the emphasis will be on the end time battle;
however, it should be understood that many aspects mentioned applied to
the historic battle as well.
5. \\#Isa 13:2-5\\ The army being gathered is described.
(a) \\#Isa 13:3\\ "I have commanded my sanctified ones" - The army
is comprised of the Lord’s SANCTIFIED ONES and His "mighty ones."
(b) \\#Isa 13:4\\ "the Lord of hosts mustereth the host of the
battle" - Let there be no mistake. Just as surely as the Lord
orchestrated the fall of Babylon by the Medes as a judgment upon
them, so the end time army will be gathered by God to judge the
whole world. The future army may not know it, but God will be
their Commander.
(c) "of the kingdoms of nations" - This army will be a collection of
soldiers from many nations.
(d) This is to be a large army of "great people" and because of their
numbers, they will make much "noise."
(e) \\#Isa 13:5\\ "They come from a far country." Interestingly,
the Persian nation was not a FAR distance from Babylon, their
capital cities being only 250 miles from each other. Hence,
this statement likely relates to the end time army.
(f) "to destroy the whole land" - As God sought to destroy Babylon
in the Persian invasion, so the end time battle will DESTROY
THE WHOLE LAND.
6. It would seem logical that the army Isaiah describes in \\#1-5\\
is connected with the destruction detailed in \\#6-16\\.
B. \\#Isa 13:6-16\\ An End-Time Judgment Against the World
1. \\#Isa 13:6\\ "the day of the Lord is at hand" - This is a phrase which
often introduces the tribulation. The people will "howl" for a
"destruction from the Almighty" is "at hand."
2. \\#Isa 13:7\\ This day shall cause "all" to "faint" and "every man’s
heart shall melt." The destruction described in these verses is
very similar to the description of what the army will do (i.e. the
army will reach to the WHOLE LAND \\#5\\ and this day will come upon
EVERY MAN’S HEART \\#7\\).
3. \\#Isa 13:8\\ "pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them"
(a) The image of having "pain as a woman that travaileth" is often,
but not always, associated with the tribulation \\#1Thess 5:3\\.
(See also \\#Isa 21:3, 26:17, Psalm 48:6, Jer 50:43\\)
(b) "their faces shall be as flames" describes the shock which will
be visible on the faces of the victims and perhaps upon those
who hear what has been done.
4. \\#Isa 13:9\\ "the day of the Lord cometh" - With the repeating of
this phrase, the text gives descriptions which are certainly end
time.
(a) \\#Isa 13:9\\ "cruel both with wrath and fierce anger" - It is a
day of God’s great anger.
(b) \\#Isa 13:9\\ "he shall destroy sinners" - It is a day to cut
sinners off the earth.
(1) \\#Isa 13:11\\ "I will punish the world for their evil…
for iniquity… arrogancy… haughtiness" - God’s spells
out the purpose for this day of judgment. It is to punish
the evil and cut off the proud.
(2) \\#Isa 13:12\\ "I will make a man more precious than fine
gold" - With so much death, a person’s life will be more
precious than the most refined gold.
(c) \\#Isa 13:10\\ It is a day of cosmic signs.
(1) "the stars of heaven and the constellations… shall not
give their light"
(2) "the sun shall be darkened"
(3) "the moon shall not… shine."
(4) There are many passages which talk of these end-time signs.
Isaiah 24:23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the
LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his
ancients gloriously.
Ezekiel 32:7 And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make
the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall
not give her light.
Joel 2:10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun
and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:
Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood,
before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
Joel 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw
their shining.
(5) There are two New Testament passages which speak of these
signs in relation to the tribulation.
i. Rev 6:12-13
Rev 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a
great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon
became as blood;
13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her
untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
ii. Matthew 24:29
Matthew 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be
darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from
heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
aa. This verse specifically states the signs described
will occur AFTER the tribulation.
bb. However, Joel tells that a similar sign will occur
before the "day of the Lord."
Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood,
before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
cc. It would then appear that these signs will mark both
the beginning and the end of "day of the Lord."
(d) \\#Isa 13:13\\ "I will shake the heavens and the earth shall be
removed out of her place" - The cause of the signs is given.
God will shake the earth and heavens. While the inhabitants of
earth are familiar with earthquakes, this will be a galaxy-
quake, so severe that the earth will be moved out of its orbit.
Joel 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from
Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the
hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
Haggai 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and
I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
Hebrews 12:26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised,
saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
27 And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that
are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be
shaken may remain.
(e) \\#Isa 13:14\\ The end result is that "every one will flee unto
his own land." Who is the EVERY ONE?
(1) By \\#Isa 13:17\\, Isaiah is clearly describing the result
of the Babylonian battle with the Persians and the Medes.
However, it is difficult to discern when the shift from the
end time battle to the historic battle takes place.
(2) If the shift has already taken place, the EVERY ONE would be
the ancient Babylonians.
(3) If not, the EVERY ONE would likely be the inhabitants of
Babylon at that end time.
i. \\#Rev 18:3\\ describes Babylon’s inhabitants to be
a mixture of all nations.
ii. In \\#Rev 18:4\\, God commands His people to FLEE
out of Babylon.
(f) \\#Isa 13:15-16\\ "Every one that is found" - Whoever does not
flee, will be "thrust through" and "their children… dashed to
pieces."
(1) That is probably what happened when the Persians conquered
Babylon. A conquering army would often decimate the spirit
of their foes by cruelly assaulting its capital city.
(2) It is likely that the future Babylon will have a similar
demise.
i. First the Lord will shake the earth off of its
foundations.
ii. Then His army of soldiers will show no mercy to THEIR
CHILDREN or THEIR WIVES.
(g) Many questions remain of the end-time battle which Isaiah has
described.
(1) \\#Rev 14:8, 16:19, 17:5, 18:1-24\\ All make reference
to a place called Babylon. Many take these verses to
be a yet unidentified place or some power which is
figuratively called Babylon, indicating it is a wicked
place and associated with the world’s false religion.
If this is so, the unfulfilled prophecies in the Old
Testament relating to Babylon’s destruction would
likely be fulfilled on that place as well. However,
that is conjecture based primarily on the fact that
this region of world has been such a destitute region for
so long.
(2) It is possible that with the rise of the Muslim religion,
the literal city of Babylon and its surrounding country,
Iraq, will become a great end-time power.
(3) It is also possible that Babylon will serve as the anti-
Christ’s headquarters (at least his religious
headquarters) after he is rejected by Israel. Several
other verses point to Babylon as a religious power.
i. \\#Ge 11:1-11\\ False religion came out of Babylon.
ii. \\#Zechariah 5:5-11\\ Describes "wickedness" being
taken to "Shinar," an area in Babylon, to be set
upon a base and to have a house built for it.
This seems to be prophetic and unfulfilled.
iii. \\#Rev 17:1-6\\ The harlot is identified as a
"Babylon."
iv. \\#Rev 17:18\\ Babylon’s power as a ruler of
political kingdoms is mentioned. (The only kind
of power which has historically ruled over a
political power is religious one.)
(4) The Bible tells us that the anti-Christ will have a
rift in his own empire and use his political power
to destroy his religious arm.
Rev 17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore
sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the
whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn
her with fire.
17 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give
their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
i. All of Rev 18 describes the effect BABYLON’S
destruction will have on the world.
ii. \\#Rev 18:21\\ declares that once the destruction
of Babylon occurs, Babylon shall not exist any more.
iii. This prophecy is identical to \\#Isa 13:20-22\\.
It is a prophecy unfulfilled to this date.
(5) Perhaps the army of nations is the anti-Christ’s army,
coming exactly as the Medes did thousands of years
earlier, to extract the Lord’s vengeance upon the
literal Babylon.
(6) \\#Isa 13:20-22, Rev 18:21\\ If so, his army will totally
decimate that land so that it will never be inhabited
again.
C. \\#Isa 13:17-18\\ A Nearer Judgment Against Babylon - Somewhere
in this prophecy, the topic returns to the near-at-end defeat of
Babylon by the Medes and Persians.
1. \\#Isa 13:17\\ "Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them"
This prophecy was fulfilled by the Medes and the Persians in 539BC.
2. \\#Isa 13:17\\ "which shall not regard silver… gold" - The
attackers can not be bought off with money.
3. \\#Isa 13:18\\ "dash the young men to pieces… have no pity on
the fruit of the womb… not spare the children" - They displayed
ample bloodshed and wickedness as they executed God’s judgment upon
the Babylonians.
D. \\#Isa 13:19-22\\ The Final Judgment Against Babylon
1. \\#Isa 13:19\\ "Babylon… shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and
Gomorrah " - The GLORY of this magnificent kingdom was removed
Even to this day, Iraq (modern-day Babylon) is not a country of glory.
Yet, the next prophecy has not been fulfilled.
2. \\#Isa 13:20\\ "It shall never be inhabited" - The land is presently
inhabited.
3. \\#Isa 13:21-22\\ "wild beasts… shall lie there" - The only
inhabitants that will be left will be the wild animals.
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